But wait. if you assume that the pattern continues for the digits between 3 and 8, you end up with this:

1 + 4 = 5

2 + 5 (+5) = 12

3 + 6 (+12) = 21

4 + 7 (+21) = 32

5 + 8 (+32) = 45

6 + 9 (+45) = 60

7 + 10 (+60) = 77

8 + 11 (+77) = 96

And, in truth, it could be either. You’re not given enough information to know for sure how to proceed. It’s a coin toss whether the last line immediately follows the third line, or whether there’s a whole bunch of lines in between and you need to “get the pattern” to extrapolate the 8th line.

Now let’s look at that second puzzle again.

This one also has the potential for alternate answers, but instead of inferences, it depends on whether you follow the traditional order of operations (parentheses, exponents, multiplication/division, addition/subtraction) or you simply read left to right.